Export Controls & Sanctions

The Wisconsin Project conducts research and advocacy to support robust controls on strategic goods and enforcement of autonomous and international sanctions. Export controls and sanctions are powerful means of inhibiting the spread of technologies used to make weapons of mass destruction. Listed below is a selection of the Wisconsin Project’s work in these areas, including analysis of export control enforcement cases, Iran sanctions violations, and commentary on U.S. export control policy.

On April 24, 2017, the United States sanctioned 271 employees of Syria’s Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC) in response to the Assad government’s April 4 sarin gas attack in Khan Sheikoun. The designations aim to further punish SSRC itself, rather than the contribution of any single individual. As such, the action highlights SSRC's central role in Syria's non-conventional weapon programs.